Courage
by Steefwaterbutter
Summary: Traveling through the underground is not for the faint of heart. There are many dangers: monsters to fight, puzzles to solve, decisions to make. One does not simply need determination, but courage as well. My take on what might have been going on in Frisk's mind during four different parts of the game.
1. Into the Woods

**A/N: These four drabbles were written as part of my daily writing challenge, that I started on December 2. I have a nagging feeling this will just dissapear among the hundreds of other Undertale fics, but... no harm in throwing it out there, I guess. :D**

 **Frisk is somewhat based off myself. I don't know about you, but if I was thrown into the situation Frisk was, I would probably be freaking out quite a bit. XD**

* * *

 _Into the Woods_

o

Frisk stood, looking up at the huge doors in front of them. A part of them wanted to rush through the doors and back into Toriel's arms, safe and warm but...

No. There would be no turning back now.

 _Do not worry about me, my child. Someone has to take care of the flowers._ The soothing memory of Toriel's last words filled the child's ears. Renewed determination stirred in their chest.

Slowly stepping forward, Frisk shivered and glanced around rubbing their hand up and down across the opposite arm. Their woolen sweater did little to protect them against the cold. The white of the snow blazed in their eyes; a line of dark trees stood guard to their left.

But, other than that, they were alone in the forest.

With nothing else to do, Frisk decided to press on. As far as they could see, there was nowhere to save, no place to regain their lost hp.

Small tremors ran through Frisk's body as they walked, partly from cold, partly from fear. If an enemy came, and they died... Frisk wasn't sure they could go through the heartbreaking agony of leaving Toriel again.

Soon they came to a fallen branch lying in the middle of their path. Frisk bent down to study it, wondering for a second which one of the trees it had come from. And... thinking of trees, what kind of trees lived down here? Did they grow from magic and not from sunlight? If so, did monsters eat these plants to regain their magic?

Frisk was still pondering these very important questions when a booming crack spread through the forest. Frisk jumped, and slowly raised their hands in front of their chest, letting out a small whimper.

They dared turn their head and saw the branch had been shattered into several small sticks, as of some great animal, as powerful as an elephant, had stepped upon it, then vanished. What if... another thought sprang into Frisk's mind. What if the creature that had broken the stick was... invisible? What if it was standing right next to Frisk, preparing to pounce?

A slight breeze stirred, pushing against their cheek. It felt like the breath of some animal, standing right next to them.

Tenticles of ice shivered down Frisk's neck, and they streaked forward, grabbing one of the sticks, and holding on to it until the ridges pressed into their palms.

That done, Frisk turned and ran. Their shoes made small crunching sounds as they pressed against the fallen snow, the only sound in the deafening silence. Suddenly a small bridge with a wooden gate or fence of sorts arching across slid into the child's vision. Hope!

 _If I can just make it to the gate,_ Frisk thought desperately, _maybe they won't be able to follow me._ Being a small child, Frisk fervently hoped they would be able to slip through the bars.

Their breath was beginning to tear in their throat, but Frisk dared not slow down.

 _Just make it to the gate. Make it to the gate._

Suddenly, Frisk was jerked to a stop by some unseen force. Again and again they tried to force their foot forward, but it was as if they were stuck behind a solid wall.

A steady crunch of footsteps sounded behind them, but Frisk dared not even turn their head. They stood, waiting and listening as the footsteps came closer and closer. Tears pricked at the corner of their eyes, and their heart felt ready to leap out of their chest. A small whimper escaped the corner of their mouth, and Frisk clamped their lips shut, determined not to let the monster hear how scared they were.

A voice boomed out, deep and growly, filling the silence with its terrible noise.

"HUMAN. DONT YOU KNOW..."

 _Please, please, please..._ Frisk barely heard what the monster was saying. Their hands clamped on the stick, and they shut their eyes tight, their breath hitching.

"TURN AROUND AND SHAKE MY HAND."

For a long second Frisk stood and clutched the stick, their soul quivering. Slowly, very slowly, they loosened their grip, letting it slip from their fingers to hit the snow with a small "shush".

Then Frisk practically whipped around and stuck out their hand, wanting to get it over with as soon as possible.

 _PHHHHHHHTTTTTT..._

Frisk let out a loud squeal and launched themselves backwards, landing with a thump on the bridge. With wide eyes they stared at the small, grinning skeleton with a blue coat.

 _Why... does a ske... skeleton need a coat?_ Frisk through, trying to skuttle backwards through the gate.

They managed to scramble onto their knees and were about to take off again when they heard the skeleton quickly say, "whoah, whoah, easy there, kiddo." His voice was deep and gravely, but somehow not the same as the voice Frisk had heard call out " N." This voice held tricklings of concern.

"easy there. i'm not gunna hurt you."

Take a shuddering breath, Frisk turned around and gave the skeleton a long, critical look. He wasn't quite like the skeletons Frisk has seen in books, much shorter and rounder. He was indeed wearing a thick blue sweatshirt, with a fur-lined hood. Black shorts hung loosely to his knees, and his feet were protected by fuzzy slippers. All in all, a rather comical appearance.

"Y-you scared me," Frisk chided, giving the skeleton a stern glare, and folding their arms in an effort to appear tough.

The skeleton seemed to relax a bit and gave the child a wide grin. "hey, sorry 'bout that. the name's sans."

"I'm-"

"hey, you're a human, right?" Sans asked bluntly. "nice to meet you."

Sans held out his hand again, and this time Frisk took it with only a slight hesitation, giving the skeleton a small, shy grin of their own.

 _PHHHHTTTTT-_ -


	2. Loyalty

_Loyalty_

o

"Yo... say something mean so I can hate you."

Frisk opened their mouth, but nothing came out. After a second of uncomfortable silence, they shook their head. At this this, Monster Kid's face dropped and Frisk half-turned away, rubbing their hands up and down their eyes.

"Okay, here it goes... I..." Monster Kid's voice came out soft, unsteady. "I... I hate your guts."

A stone settled into Frisk's stomach as the words reached their ears. _This isn't fair!_ they thought. _All I want is to get home! Why does everyone want to kill me!? Or... or... hate me?_ Frisk took a step away, raising a hand to their mouth and biting a knuckle.

"Man... I'm such a turd," Monster Kid sighed wearily. "I should _really_ get home. Uh, bye."

He turned and began hurrying back the way he had come. Frisk watched, their soul seeming to sink all the way down to the ground.

Suddenly, Monster Kid's feet slipped on a piece of loose shale. Without any arms to grab onto something, he slid over the side of the side of the narrow stone bridge, landing on a tiny rock outcropping. Eyes wide, he pressed his body against the rock wall, his breath coming quick and unsteady.

"Y-yo, heh-help!" he pleaded.

Frisk's soul shot up from their boots into their mouth, immediately forgetting all past grievances. They darted forward, arms outstretched praying that they would make it in time. They had almost reached the spot where Monster Kid had fallen when they halted, heart hammering in their chest.

Undyne was standing only a few feet away. Though she was still wearing heavy armour that covered her entire body, Frisk could feel her gaze burning straight through them.

Frisk's head was throbbing; they couldn't breathe. They glanced at the terrified, Monster Kid, then at the towering Undyne. They took a step forward, then jerked to a stop again.

 _Undyne, she'll kill me while I'm helping Monster Kid up, I know she will!_ Frisk thought frantically. _But I can't let him fall, I_ can't _!_

"I-I'm _slipping!_ "

Frisk made their choice. Tearing their eyes away from Undyne, Frisk jumped forward and grabbed the front of Monster Kid's shirt. For a second they strained to pull him upwards, Monster Kid kicking his legs to try and help out. Finally Frisk managed to haul the kid over the edge and to safety. For a second Frisk simply lay on their stomach, their hair hanging in clumps over their eyes, their breath gasping and their limbs trembling. Every second they expected to feel the cold, hard steel of Undyne's spear driven through their body.

Undyne's armour clanked metallicly as the huntress stepped forward.

Frisk could only stare up with pleading eyes. They had no strength left for running, no breath left with which to beg for mercy.

Then, Monster Kid stepped in front of them. Frisk's breath caught, and they scrambled to their feet, so fast they almost fell down again.

"Y... y... yo, dude, i-if you want to hurt my friend..." Monster Kid's voice was shaking. He swallowed hard, then steadied. "You're going to have to go through me."

Undyne said nothing. Her cold gaze could cut through ice. It could cut through Frisk's body and lay their soul out bare, unprotected.

For a long moment, the only sound came from the droplets of water slowly dripping from the ceiling, and Frisk's quiet breathing.

Then Undyne turned and left. Frisk's felt their shoulders drop, and they let out a long breath, the knot in their stomach slowly untying.

"Yo..." Monster Kid breathed. "You really saved my skin." He let out a shaky laugh, and scuffed his boot against the bridge. "Guess being enemies was just a nice thought, huh?"

Frisk simply nodded, letting out a sigh. Then they suddenly stepped forward and wrapped their arms around the small monster's surprisingly warm body.

"Thank you."

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 **A/N: thanks to everyone who faved and followed. Don't forget to drop a review on your way out, I'm very curious to see what people think.**


	3. A Warrior's Battle

_A/N: This ones pretty darn short, but I like the idea behind it._ _I was watching someone do a dub of Undyne and Frisk becoming friends, and suddenly thought, "Why does Undyne just... leave you? Why couldn't she just come along for a while?"_

* * *

 _A Warrior's Battle_

o

"Undyne, wait!"

The fish warrior screeched to a halt mid-stride, She swung around to see the human child standing behind her, looking very small indeed.

"What is it, punk?" Undyne said, flashing a grin. "C'mon, human, why are you looking so down?"

"I..." the human hesitated, twisting their hands together. "I was wondering if you could come with me for a little bit? To help, um, keep the monsters away? I don't think they would bother me if you were around."

Undyne's face fell. She let out a heavy sigh, turning away. How to explain this to a human, and a child at that?

"I... I can't."

"..." The child didn't respond, and Undyne could only imagine the expression their face bore.

"Sometimes... we have to fight, or work our way out of, battles on our own. There's not always going to be someone by your side."

"But... you _could_ be by my side! We could do this together, as friends! Just like you wanted."

"Kid, I said I would be your friend, not that I would fight your battles for you. It's difficult to explain... look, I know you can do this! You managed to get past me, the captain of the royal guard! You didn't even fight me, but you are more of a warrior than most monsters I know. _Phhht_ , those other monsters should be a breeze." Her voice dropped. "Getting past these monsters, it's making you stronger. It may not seem like it at the time, but it's helping make you a better person. If I did all that for you, I'd be taking away your chance to grow."

"I... I know," the child said, their voice wavering, quickly scrubbing a hand over their face. "I just thought..."

Undyne gritted her teeth. She hated seeing her new friend so upset. _Ugh, they better not tell anyone about this..._ "Hey punk."

Undyne knelt down and opened her arms. "C'mere."

The human hesitated for a second, then stepped forward into the hug.

"I know you're scared. Only someone totally stupid wouldn't be. But you gotta keep holding on. You gotta stay determined."


	4. The Flowers of the Field

_The Flowers of the Field_

o

"Kill me."

Frisk stood in front of the small broken flower, fighting to hold their gaze steady, fighting against the emotions rising in their throat, threatening to overwhelm them. Once again, a hand reached for their weapon the stick they had carried with them for almost the whole journey. Once again, they stopped.

"I'll kill them."

The child's hand reached down involentarily. Then it jerked to a stop, trembling.

"I'll kill your friends."

Frisk said nothing, but both their face and their stomach hardened. _You will not harm them._

 _"I'll kill them all!"_

A sharp intake of breath was the only response. Suddenly, Frisk's mask cracked, and they sank down to their knees in front of the flower, looking away into the vast expanse of darkness. Two choices were laid out in front of them, as clear as the light shinning down from above. Mercy, or violence?

 _He deserves to die,_ a voice rang out in Frisk's mind, sharp and cold. But almost as soon as the first voice spoke, a second countered it, just as sharp, but with a hint of warmth.

 _I said I would never kill a monster. I promised._

 _Killing him is the only way to protect our friends. We will never be safe until he is dead._

 _I can't kill him._

 _Then he will kill everyone else. Is this what you want, Frisk?_

 _I won't kill him._

At that moment, a third voice rang out, its tone weary to the point of indifference.

 _He's nothing but a flower._

"That's right," Frisk finally spoke, directing their gaze back at Flowey. "Nothing but a flower."

"..." For once, Flowey was too shocked to speak. His broken face seemed to twist in confusion. Several golden petals broke off to flutter to the floor.

"What I mean to say is: I'm not scared of you anymore. You tried to beat me, and you failed." As Frisk spoke, courage and determination beginning to flow through their veins. They had gone through the valley of the shadow of death, and survived to tell the tale. This broken flower's threats... it was nothing compared to the battle they had just fought.

"But... I guess... even a flower deserves mercy."

Slowly, Frisk reached out to stroke the cracked and fragile choice... of mercy. For a second it seemed like all the monsters they had met, befriended, spared, were by their side, sparing the flower right alongside Frisk.

"Why..." Flowey's voice was heavier than Frisk had ever heard. Tears filled his every word. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

"Because I swore that if I was given the chance, I would spare every single monster while I was down here. Every single one. Even you," Frisk's own eyes began clouding with tears, and they let them come, not bothering to hold back the emotions sweeping through them.

By the time Frisk's eyes had cleared, Flowey was gone.

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 _A/N: This one's probably my favorite. I was thinking one night of whether or not Frisk should kill Flowey in another story I was writing. For a moment, I thought, yeah, maybe they would. But then another thought came into my head: He's just a flower._


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